Easter Sunday continued the virtuous theme with a special presentation to a bunch of people who do a fabulous job looking after, and providing for recreational activity at, Nukuhou Saltmarsh on the Ohiwa Harbour edge.

As of early this year, their tally of trapped pests hit 1000 with poisoned pests likely to be in the many thousands more.

They check traps and count birds on the first Sunday of each month and it was great to surprise them with a special cake from Charity Cakes in the shape of a trap box, beside some oioi reeds with a fernbird amongst them.

The group’s rewards are usually just the joy they get from seeing and hearing such things as fernbirds, spotless crakes and bitterns on their doorstep, but they go the extra mile to share what they have with boardwalks and ceramic tiles providing access and information for visitors.

The cake was a tribute to a bunch of people who give far more than they expect back – stop in and visit their site if you are passing.

You could maybe even plan to help out with a Sunday bird monitoring - there’s sure to be a cuppa and pleasant chat afterwards, and just possibly a piece of cake.

For the record, the April tally to date was 214 stoats, 132 weasels, 376 rats, 213 mice, 58 hedgehogs and 12 possums, and the bird count was 76 fernbirds, with a banded rail and possibly a spotless crake also heard.